A look at the John Cena/Rock program and the questions that have come up this week, plus part one of our look at Doug Furnas, the rise of Ronda Rousey, the first shots in the Friday night war, and a look at WWE profits in every division, a look at some of WWE's ancillary income, the movie division, Ring of Honor's iPPV, a look at what Rock has and hasn't meant to ratings and more on the build to WrestleMania is all in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

We look at the life of Doug Furnas, including how he got in the Can-Am Express, his career in Japan, his life after wrestling, his amazing powerlifting career, how Kevin Sullivan got him into pro wrestling and the way his debut was set up, football, leaving Japan for WWF and more.

We also look at what has and hasn't worked so far in the Rock-Cena program and the reason for the current battle plan, as well as its risks.

We also look at television viewing on Friday nights from this point forward, the likely winners and losers and who people say they will be watching.

We look at Saturday's Strikeforce show and the future of women's MMA. We look at the Miesha Tate vs. Ronda Rousey feud, Rousey vs. Sarah Kaufman and the future of the Strikeforce brand.

We also have more on WWE business, including total attendance numbers for the last three years, the unique way house show profitability has risen while attendance has gone down, how much the company spends for a television taping and a PPV show, the WWE business revenue streams vs. those of UFC, plus magazine, video division and movie divisions, and business increases and cutbacks, as well as how much income the company derives out of the U.K.

We also have more on the John Laurinaitis vs. Teddy Long feud, matches for Mania, updates on Kharma and Wade Barrett, the WWE Network, Dwayne Johnson's movie career and how that relates to future wrestling, what happened to Mark Henry's push, HHH's contract, plus for a number of wrestlers going forward, Edge talks Hall of Fame, twitter embarrassments, WWE tryout news, plus notes on all the WWE weekend house shows with highlights and business notes.

The Wrestling Observer ranges weekly from 35,000 to 50,000 words covering pro wrestling and MMA internationally. Each issue has coverage and analysis of all the major news, plus every issue breaks major news stories before the Internet sties and has the most complete look at the pro wrestling and MMA business anywhere, plus history pieces available nowhere else.

The Observer is now in its 29th year of being the leading insider pro wrestling publication in the world. The biggest and most influential names in the pro wrestling and MMA industry, from bookers to promoters to Hall of Fame wrestlers and fighters to the biggest names on camera and behind the scenes, along with thousands of readers in all 50 states and more than 30 countries subscribe. Many have subscribed for 20 years or longer consecutively. They get the most detailed and inside coverage of what is going on all over the world. Everywhere from Wall Street to the major offices to television networks in the U.S. and Japan turn to the Observer for what is going on in the business.

You can also subscribe via check, cash or money order, as well as credit card by mail, by sending to Wrestling Observer Newsletter, P.O Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228.

Also in the latest Observer: Mexico, Japan, Russo talks

We also look at the UFC show in Australia, the controversy and behind the scenes regarding the judging of the Ian McCall vs. Demetrious Johnson fight, and match-by-match coverage.

We also update ROH, the direction of the company, and its last iPPV show from New York, the 10th anniversary show.

We've got notes on Josh Barnett's attempt to get licensed, as well as coverage of CMLL's first big show of the year, and notes on Royal Rumble PPV business. We also have our in-depth look at the ratings of the national shows, including how every segment of Raw and Impact did, what gained in audience, and what lost in audience.

We also have our weekly features with the results from the major events held around the world over the past week, as well as reviews of the major television shows.

--A look at the complete card for AAA's Rey de Reyes

--Notes on the big angle being set up and the L.A. Park possible turn

--Dragon Gate title change

--All Japan's major show of the week setting up the 3/20 card

--Update on Kenta Kobashi

--Ownership of New Japan

--Plans going forward for New Japan under new ownership

--Potential match of the year

--Lineup for the 2012 New Japan Cup tournament

--Zero-One's anniversary show

--ROH's latest TV tapings

--More on Hulk Hogan sex tape

--Vince Russo talks about his departure from TNA

--TNA star in movie role filming this week

--Brian Kendrick talks his TNA departure

--Eric Bischoff sells a new network show

--Ring Ka King update

--Samoa Joe & Magnus turn

--Flair update

--Lawsuit filed against TNA

--Changes in TNA on television

--TNA weekend tour notes

--More on upcoming television shows

--The decision to make Frankie Edgar the top lightweight contender

--Arguments for Edgar and for Pettis to get the next shot

--More testosterone therapy questions

--Chael Sonnen apology swerve

--More new UFC fights

--Schedule until the end of July

--More on the cast of this season's Ultimate Fighter

--Controversy over Michigan commission

--Mirko Cro Cop's retirement

The Most Popular Observers Ever

New subscribers ordering 24 or 40 issues have to let us know what major stories of the past 11 years you are most interested in and we'll send the issue with the best coverage of that story. We've got coverage of every major PPV event and world wide spectacular, every major star switching promotions, histories of companies like FMW, Rings and New Japan, retirement and obit issues of every major star who fits into those descriptions over the past 11 years, as well as our biggest issue every year, the annual awards issue, and our most controversial issue of every year, the Hall of Fame issue.

Our most requested issues in our history are:

*November 17, 1997 (full details of everything leading to the most famous wrestling match finish of modern times at the Survivor Series plus a history of in-ring double-crosses)

*December 21, 1998 (the complete Vince McMahon-Bret Hart conversation right before the Survivor Series match so you'll know exactly what was said--the conversation played in edited form both on the inaugural broadcast of Confidential as well as in Wrestling with Shadows, but everything that was said between the two about the match that was going to take place that same night)

*August 1, 1994 (the most detailed coverage anywhere of the Vince McMahon steroid trial, an issue praised in numerous newspaper article and Sex, Lies and Headlocks)

*March 26, 2001 (death of WCW and history of pro wrestling on the Turner networks)

*October 22, 2001 (why the adult audience has left pro wrestling in such great numbers and what needed to have been done to save them)

*April 21, 2003 (history of WWF continues with the expansion nationally, the death of the regional territories and the rise of Hulk Hogan)

*May 12, 2003 (The life and death of Elizabeth and the rise of fall of Lex Luger)

*June 9, 2003 (Part 1 of history of WWF vs. WCW wars and what many say was the greatest year in U.S. wrestling; plus a look at Fred Blassie)

*June 16, 2003 (Freddie Blassie through the eyes of his biggest rivals and friends)

*July 28, 2003 (Part 2 of the history of the WWF vs. WCW war and the plans to make new superstars in the early 90s, what happened, and the night where the three biggest wrestling companies in the world combined for a joint show and what happened)

*August 25, 2003 (2003 Hall of Fame issue with huge profiles on the controversial career of Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit as well as historical features on Earl Caddock and Francisco Flores)

*September 22, 2003 (Part 3 of the history of the WWF vs WCW war with the seeds that caused the collapse of the industry in the 90s, Zahorian trial, Gulf War controversy, Flair leaves WCW while holding world title and much more)

*October 27, 2003 (The fascinating life of Stu Hart plus the story of Road Warrior Hawk)

*February 23, 2004 (History of Guerrero family with Eddy's win over Brock Lesnar)

*March 1, 2004 (History of WWF continues with the period that brought the company down in early 1992, the mistakes, the real stories and how the business changed)

*March 8, 2004 (History of Wrestlemania, its greatest matches and best and worst shows as voted both by wrestlers and non-wrestlers and Wrestlemania history books)

*July 5, 2004 (A look behind the scenes and Ric Flair's book and his background with Eric Bischoff and Hulk Hogan)

*July 12, 2004 (A look at more on Ric Flair's book and his comments on Bruno Sammartino, Bret Hart and Mick Foley)

*August 16, 2004 (History of the Olympians in pro wrestling)

*August 23, 2004 (2004 Hall of Fame issue and biggest issue of the year with huge profiles on Kazushi Sakuraba, Undertaker, Bob Backlund, Masahiro Chono, Ultimo Dragon, Kurt Angle and Tarzan Lopez--this counts as one issue if you are asking for a free issue, but ordered separately, due to size, is $6 in North America and $7 overseas)

*October 4, 2004 (the life and times of Big Bossman; as well as details of the life and times of one of the most influential men world wide in pro wrestling history, Jim Barnett)

*November 15, 2004 (the full story of what happened between Kurt Angle and Daniel Puder, plus coverage of the most important week in the history of TNA)

*January 24, 2005 (2004 Awards issue, Rock and WWE part company)

*March 14, 2005 (the 50 biggest money players in the history of WWF and a look at their Hall of Fame)

*May 9, 2005 (the life and times of Chris Candido)

*June 20, 2005 (The full story behind Paul Heyman and the death of ECW, as well as coverage of One Night Stand, Hardcore Homecoming and behind the scenes of both shows)

*July 18, 2005 (death of Shinya Hashimoto and his records with a look at the fall of New Japan, the Matt Hardy angle, tons of WWE firings, Cornette firing in detail as well as problems of a WWE developmental territory in our biggest news issue of the year which is a double-sized issue and would be $6 on its own and $7 overseas)

*January 9, 2006 (The life and times of Superstar Billy Graham, plus New Year's Eve 2005 coverage)

*January 16, 2006 (2005 Awards double issue, $6 or $7 overseas)

*April 3, 2006 (Story of Ann Calvello and the history of Roller Derby--many called this the best issue of the Observer ever)

*April 10, 2006 (Behind the scenes at the 2006 Wrestlemania/Hall of Fame week)

*July 24, 2006 (The History of the Von Erichs and World Class Championship Wrestling--the most unreal story ever in wrestling)

*September 4, 2006 (The Rise and Fall of Kurt Angle; 2006 Hall of Fame inductions of Eddie Guerrero, Paul Bowser, Masakatsu Funaki, Aja Kong and Hiroshi Hase including tons of wrestling history around the world from the 20s through the 60s, the evolution of working to not working in Japan, and a look at Guerrero in hindsight, double issue $6 or $7 overseas)

*October 9, 2006 (A look back nine years later at the life and legacy of Brian Pillman with tons of inside information about what made him tick as his real objectives)

*November 15, 2006 (History of WCW part one, Eric Bischoff's book and how the industry was changed forever)

*November 27, 2006 (History of WCW part three, When Bischoff challenged McMahon to fight; Truth and fiction around Bret Hart signing with WCW and why it didn't click)

*December 6, 2006 (details behind Pride's offers to sell promotion and Part four of History of WCW part four, Hogan-Goldberg match and why there was no rematch, WCW loses NBC network deal in 1999 and the real reasons the company fell apart)

*August 11, 2008 (Ric Flair leaves WWE; Updated history of pro wrestlers and MMA fighters who went to the Olympics)

* September 8, 2008 (2008 Hall of Fame double issue, $7 on its own, $8 overseas; part one of Killer Kowalski bio)

* September 15, 2008 (Life and Times of Evan Tanner)

* September 22, 2008 (The amazing career of Killer Kowalski, one of our most in-depth bios)

You can also order any of these issues on their own for $4 in North America or $5 overseas.

Rates are:

For the United States, it is $12 for 4 issues, $29 for 12, $55 for 24, $91 for 40 and $118 for 52. In Canada and Mexico, rates are $13.50 for 4, $33 for 12, $61 for 24, $101 for 40 and $131 or 52. In Europe, you can get the fastest delivery and best rates by sending to
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. For the rest of the world, rates are $15.50 for 4, $41 for 12, $78 for 24, $126 for 40 issues and $163 for 52 .

If you order by mail with a check, cash or money order (P.O. Box 1228, Campbell, CA 95009-1228), you can get $1 off in every price range.

We now have available personally autographed copies of Tributes II, our latest book, as well as a DVD that comes with it talking more about the subjects in the book. The book covers the life stories of Lou Thesz, Wahoo McDaniel, Elizabeth, Fred Blassie, Road Warrior Hawk, Andre the Giant, Curt Hennig, Johnny Valentine, Davey Boy Smith, Terry Gordy, Owen Hart, Stu Hart, Gorilla Monsoon, The Sheik and Tim Woods.

To get all of those biographies as back issues of the Observer would be a $60 value today. This is a collection of some of the best Observer articles of the past several years in a hardcover, full-color format that is 239 pages. There is also a foreword by Bret Hart. The book price is $12.95 plus $3.50 for shipping costs in the U.S., $10 for shipping costs to Canada and $12 for shipping costs outside North America. You can order the book the same way you order the newsletter.

Tuesday News & Links

-- Ted DiBiase had shoulder surgery today and apparently it went well.

-- As of last night, the word was that Shaq doing WrestleMania was a dead issue. Which begs the question why Shaq did all that media saying he was going to be on the show. He is on Conan next Tuesday so we'll see what he has to say.

-- Also upcoming: Chris Jericho on Jimmy Fallon next Wednesday and Rock on Live with Kelly next Friday the 23rd. (Thanks to Adam)

-- In a follow-up to last night's fun and exciting Observer Radio, I have been in communication via Twitter with JOE PARK, ESQ., regarding the disappearance of his brother Chris. According to Mr. Park, the reason he is Joe PARK and his brother is Chris PARKS is because Wikipedia (and Mike Tenay, James Mitchell, and numerous others) is incorrect. The family's real last name is Park. Ironically, a day earlier, regarding a different subject, he had posted that Wikipedia was never wrong. I guess you learn something new every day.

For the record, in terms of Abyss history, he was listed officially in TNA for a long time as "Chris Park", and in fact, when he used to wear that jumpsuit, it had "PARK" written on the back, not "PARKS". However, as noted above, the announcers and others kept calling him "Chris Parks" repeatedly, and in fact, on Impact Thursday, when his brother first showed up and told the security guy that he was "Joe Park", the security guy said, "I'll get this checked out for you, Mr. Parks." Anyway, you can follow Joe Park and help out in the search here.

-- My Twitter is here. I will be live Tweeting through much of WrestleMania weekend (including thoughts on the ROH shows, WrestleMania, etc.), so if you aren't following me, now's the time to jump on board.

-- Speaking of social media, a Facebook post from Eric Bischoff late last night: Just had a beer here in Nashville. Bartender asked me I worked for the boss "Jeremy Borash". When I asked "WTF" that was supposed to mean, I was told emphatically that Jeremy has represented himself as an "owner" of TNA. Jeremy is a low rent bit player who should be fortunate he has a job.

-- Vince Russo is now doing seminars on how to book pro wrestling. The comedy writes itself. These are, quoting from the press release, "limited engagements". So you don't want to miss it. You will learn things such as how to create larger-than-life personas and personalities (you know, all the larger-than-life personas and personalities that he's developed over the last decade in TNA), avoiding the pitfalls of politics (didn't he write a book about how the pitfalls of politics nearly killed him?), and, this is the best, "how to generate ratings".

Presumably he's going to talk about generating consistent 1.1s for about the last five years straight and not when Impact moved to Monday nights and collapsed to an 0.8, or how to consistently get an audience to turn off the show as it progresses. I did note that he apparently will not be going into detail in this exclusive seminar about how to absolutely decimate PPV buyrates to levels never before seen in pro-wrestling history. Maybe that's in the next limited engagement. For info, email
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
.

-- In Glass Half Full News, UFC officially announced that TUF: Live had gotten off to "a strong start" in the ratings. Strong start meaning an 0.9 rating and an audience that declined throughout the show.

-- If you're heading to Miami for WrestleMania 28, Kevin Nash and Sean Waltman will be hosting their second annual pre-party that Friday night. The party will be at Oceans Ten and starts at 8pm. Come party with Nash, Waltman and a host of other superstars, including Billy Gunn, Sunny, Harry Smith, Robbie E and more! Details and tickets can be found at PWRShow.com.

-- A double main event has been signed for EVOLVE 11 on April 13th in Toronto at the Doubletree by Hilton - Toronto Airport on 655 Dixon Road. Tickets are now on sale in the www.DGUSA.tv Store or by calling 267-519-9744. The live iPPV at www.WWNLive.com can be pre-ordered now. The double main event is Fit Finlay vs. Sami Callihan in a rematch of a bout people raved about, and Generico vs. Low Ki.

-- UFC on FUEL this week goes behind the scenes with Ultimate Fighter: Live. Show airs at 10:30 PM Eastern.

-- LIVE PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING returns to Lima, Ohio on April 7th as W.A.R. Wrestling presents "FOOL'S GOLD" at the UAW Hall 1440 Bellefontaine Ave. 45804. Come out and witness the best professional wrestling around with 8 hard hitting, high flying, action packed matches that has thrilled thousands of fans over the years and Lima, Ohio's best kept secret for entertainment.

-- Adam writes: Currently watching QUANTUM LEAP on G4 right now, in 2012, and right now they're airing an episode about the main character playing the role of a pro wrestler during the 50's in ATL. Terry Funk plays the role as the main heel. Just blown away to see this on TV right and figured I'd share.